1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to retail display structures, and more particularly to shelf separator structures and the manner of securing same to merchandise shelves.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In merchandizing and consumer commerce the presentation of goods to the purchaser is a matter of some significance, the neatness and organization of the display having a strong psychological association with quality. Moreover, a neat, well organized, arrangement of goods advances purchasing convenience, particularly when the shelf arrangement is clearly marked. Thus the art of presenting goods for purchase has had some attention in the past, and various display structures have been devised that attend to these concerns.
In any mechandizing scheme the fundamental mechanisms of successful commerce require a constant modification of the goods offered for sale. The style, selection, and assortment of goods is therefore constantly changing. These interests of the seller of a constantly changing assortment are thus a fact of business and the display mechanisms therefor are therefore continuously changing. For these reasons the prior art is replete with various shelf organising structures that include the facility for convenient change. Examples of such adjustable display organizers may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,341,945 to Gibson; U.S. Pat. No. 4,775,058 to Yatsko; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,615,276 to Garabedian. Each of the foregoing describes shelf divider assemblies in which a front rail is attached to the shelf edge, either by adhesive or by clamping, to provide a fixing point or mount for orthogonal shelf dividers in adjustable spacing. While suitable for the purposes intended, this substantially permanent attachment of the rail to the shelf edge limits the options of use and further limits any cleaning or refinishing of the shelf itself.
More importantly, fixed edge rails on the shelf edge limit the facility of moving fresh goods onto the shelf surface. The rail may also be utilized to form display panels on which pricing or other descriptive information is set out and which therefore present a ledge in the path of loading. Edge rail structures that are conveniently removed are therefore desired and sought and it is one such structure that is disclosed herein.